as mentioned, keep a full tank of flue, sand or kitty litter works, how ever, don't forget the salt, I keep a booth several bags of salt and kitty litter in my truck. Dropping the down the tire psi also helps. ( I run 40 psi load range E, truck bed is empty)

 

Cable chains are also worth considering. They cost about half what link chains cost, weigh about 1/3 what link chains do and are pretty easy to install and remove. Only about $50-60 a pair...

 

Although I'm sure you don't want to here it, the best addition for winter traction would be a good set of snow tires... its a night and day difference from normal street tread. Cooper and Hankook both make extremely nice snow tires that are quite reasonably priced (as do many other tire company's).

Adding weight to the bed, though, also does wonders... and it is much cheaper . But, I wouldnt be caught in the winter driving a 2WD without a set of snowies... sure you can manage, but it is so much safer and easier to get around.

 

I had Dunlop Winter Sport M3's on my '06 Mustang GT when I had it. It was amazing how much grip I had. They were actually pretty decent on the dry roads too. The difference between standard street tires and the winter tires was definitely night and day, as you said.

This thread just reminds me that I need to get my sandbags out of storage and loaded into the truck. I drove it around last night, and with 4x4 it did great! The Cooper Zeon LTZ's do a decent job. In 2wd, it wasn't bad, but much more relaxing in 4wd.

joe

 

As long as the roads are clear try to keep your momentum going (at slow speeds) Coming to a stop can be your enemy (but never get too close to other cars .... well we know why)... Only time i got stuck in my 2wd last winter was after dropping a co-worker off and turning around in the parking lot... backed up a bit too far. I also pressured down to about 18-24 psi in the rear and the same in the front... Makes a hell of a difference. Best of luck to ya.

 

Im getting ready to add 2 80# bags on concrete in my bed also.

 

Yeah, Best advice is:
1: Extra wight in the back over the rear axel
2: Bring down your tire pressure to a low but safe level
3: make sure you have good winter tires. (If you dont know, simply read your side wall, if you see an M+S or a mountain with a snowflake in the middle, your tires are rated for snowy conditions

and last but not least

4: DON'T BE A STUPID DRIVER. Even if you have a full 4x4 vehicle with Tru Lockers or whatever, that won't help if you are being stupid and run on ICE. ICE= 0 Traction/ 0 Traction= Truck not touching ground and sliding. So if you are coming up to a bridge or you see a patch of ice in the road, do the smart thing, Slow way down, and coast over the ice. Do not try to accelerate or turn if you don't have to. Just coast. Be safe out there everyone. Because in the end, you can have the coolest truck on the forum, but it will not do you any good if it is upside down in a ditch.

 

I put snow from my driveway and packed it down a bit and it works fine. Pulled a few people who were stuck

 

i used my 20 with 275/60/20 cooper zeons last winter when they were new.Didnt wanna chance it this winter with them so i bought a set of 265/70/17 firestone winterforce uv directional tires threre studded also ...and for $830 bones they are well worth it..good thing i kept my old stockers off my 05/4.7

 

I am not sure if it has covered yet or not...but I believe what you are referring to is the Shur Trax product?

www.shurtrax.com